Why Were The Articles Of Confederation, And Economic Problems Faced By The United States

Many economic and political problems resulted in the failure of the Articles of Confederation. The United States were faced with many economic problems such as: lack common currency, printed money that lacked value, inflation, debt, and Congress not having power to tax. Along with these economic problems, there were also political problems that included of trade policies with Britain, Treaty of Paris 1783, the Western Land dispute and foreign relations with Spain. Foreign relations with Spain were tense. During this time, Spain controlled Florida and lands west of the Mississippi River. Spain wanted to stop America from expanding their land into the their territory. As a result, Spain closed the lower Mississippi River to American shipping in 1784. By blocking the river, it stopped trading to the Gulf of Mexico, which was …show more content…
In effect, Western settlers could no longer use the Mississippi River for trade. Then in 1786 American diplomats had reached an agreement with Spain. Representatives from the Southern states, however blocked the agreement because it didn’t allow Americans to use the Mississippi River. Another problem facing the nation was an economic problem that involved the Congress not being able to tax. Congress had requested funds from the states, but they were not required to contribute so very few states did. The total that was collected from the states amounted to only a small portion of the debt. Since Congress didn’t have the power to tax, the Confederation couldn’t pay its debt. Congress not being able to tax was the most influential problem in causing the failure of the Articles of Confederation. Lacking the power to tax, the Confederation couldn’t pay its debt. Since Congress didn't have the power to tax, they weren’t able to